


Silence may be golden, but communication is key

by TrashficParlour



Category: Dear Evan Hansen - Pasek & Paul/Levenson, Heathers: The Musical - Murphy & O'Keefe
Genre: A foreign concept I know thats why this is fiction, Addressing your issues, Established Relationship, F/M, Family, Implied Comas, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Jealousy, M/M, Other, Talking, ben and connor are insecure, evan but he stutters less, evans fav superhero is deadpool, his name is benny, i based evans anxiety off my own, i love them, idk what these tags are but, jared in the background: youre probably wondering how i got into this situation, sorry i dont make the rules, theres a baby, theres also benred fluff at the end for reasons
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-11
Updated: 2019-03-11
Packaged: 2019-11-12 22:57:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18020063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TrashficParlour/pseuds/TrashficParlour
Summary: Talking about issues has never been Ben's strong suit, but now that Connor had him pinned on it, he realized running from his problems causes more to arise than it helps keep at bay. Meanwhile Jared and Evan enjoy themselves at the movies.





	Silence may be golden, but communication is key

**Author's Note:**

> This is my fic for the Dear Evan Hansen Big Bang, yo yo yo. 
> 
> Also here is just a short lil info about this Universe, because it might get confusing:
> 
> -Ben is Troy Bolton's twin. It just happened to be like this. Don't ask me  
> -Jared's dad is called Adam  
> -Both Jared's mom and Cynthia as well as Zoe are dead  
> -Larry is married to Adam  
> -Connor is Agender and uses they/them pronouns  
> -Jared has a son called Benny, who is biologically Connor's kid, but Evan said he'd play baby daddy  
> -The kid is called Benny bc Ben was comatose for a while and Jared was scared Ben was never waking up
> 
> Yes thats a lot I know. I didn't think too much of the how when I wrote this fic but I hope you can enjoy it nonetheless.  
> (Also Jared and Evan call each other brother but like obv aren't related)

Jared had it up to here with Ben’s jealousy. Sure, he himself got jealous as well sometimes but this was getting ridiculous. From his spot on the couch, he glared at his fiancé. “Benjamin, seriously. We’re just going to the movies. We’re not heading off to fuck or smooch or whatever the hell kind of thing your brain can come up with.” His annoyance was clearly audible, voice nearly dripping with it. He noticed Ben’s obvious embarrassment as the older averted his gaze. “Sorry, Jare-bear,” he mumbled. “What- uh, what movie will you be watching?” Jared shot him a confused look before sighing. “Deadpool 2,” Jared shrugged, though a small smile spread across his face. Ben frowned. They’d just seen that movie a few days ago. “Deadpool?” “Yeah, what about it? It’s Evan’s favorite hero… Or antihero I suppose.” Ben went quiet for a little and Jared could practically sense what was going through his head. “Babe. There’s rewatchability in movies. Get your head out of your ass.” “I know, I know. I’m sorry, babe.” With a sigh, Ben stood up and sat down on the couch next to Jared and pulled him close. He buried his face in Jared’s neck, and mumbled some more things Jared couldn’t quite make out. Jared shook his head and wrapped his arms around his fiancé. “Evan’s like my brother babe. I promise you there’s nothing going on.” Ben hummed, kissing Jared’s cheek. “I know there’s not, I’m just-” Insecure. Scared. But he couldn’t voice that. He didn’t want Jared to know. “-stupid,” he finished his sentence with instead. Seemed like a better option to him. “You’re not stupid,” Jared argued. “Just unjustified jealous. We’re getting   
, do you really think if I wanted to leave you for someone, let alone   
, I wouldn’t have done it already?” “I suppose not.” “Good. Just keep that in mind whenever you feel like not trusting me,” he hummed, though annoyance was still very much there. Maybe even a bit of hurt, caused by Ben not trusting him. But he would deal. Just keep up the ‘It’s whatever’ facade. He had mastered it over the years.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Evan sat at home, Alana on the phone. His girlfriend had helped him ease into the usage of the anxiety inducing device. She helped him not only talk to her (and sometimes Jared) on the phone, but she was also there to hold his hand as he successfully ordered a pizza. It was a small triumph, but nothing could have stopped his high that day. Currently they were discussing whether they should go on a date in the next week. “I’m just so busy!” Alana complained, lying down on her bed. “”I want to spend time with you, but I feel like I’ll fail every class if I do!” Evan heard the silent plea for help in her voice, having gotten better at reading her over the time they had been dating. “Maybe we could, um, have a study date? I’ve been a little, well, little behind on my classes and I though you could help me maybe?” It was a blatant lie. Having next to no people to talk to, he had a lot of time to study. His teachers told him time and time again that he should do more in class and he’d easily be on top. But that meant presentations, and presentations were a concept from hell to torture innocent and anxious students, as Jared had put it once and he found himself agreeing, even if he would have worded it a bit differently. “That sounds good,” Alana replied cheerfully. “That way we can be both productive and spend time together!” Evan knew how much being on top of her classes meant to Alana, so he just hummed in response. “Yeah, so, that sound uh good?” “Absolutely.”

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Connor lazily made their way downstairs, seeming tired. They passed Jared and Ben, not really paying them any mind. They looked like they just crawled out of the darkest pits of hell. Jared of course couldn’t just let them pass. Being a dick was in his nature, especially when it meant being a dick to his sibling. All in good fun, of course. “‘Sup Con,” he called out, making them turn around. “What?” They hissed out, obviously not in the mood to talk or banter. “You look like death,” Jared commented nonchalantly. “Stayed up all night to talk to JD again?” “Maybe so, none of your business,” Connor growled out, glaring at him. Before Jared could retort, they turned around and strolled into the kitchen to grab a carton of ice-cream. They lingered for a few minutes, leaning against the counter, before deciding to head back to the living room.They sat down in the armchair and grabbed the remote. “You’re not even watching anything,” they grumbled. “So what are you doin’ in the living room?” “What are  
doing in the living room? Don’t you have your own TV?” Connor tried and failed to come up with a fitting comeback and instead just shot their brother a death glare before turning on the TV. “Shut up. Don’t you have, like… A meeting or something anyway?” “I’m going to the movies with Evan, actually.” Connor waved their hand dismissively. “Amazing. I don’t care.” “Listen here-” “Jared, stop it;” Ben murmured, gently but firmly grabbing his shoulder, immediately letting go when he felt Jared tense up. “Sorry-” he mumbled out hastily. “Whatever,” Jared hissed, crossing his arms and pulling out his phone. “Evan should be here any minute, hopefully. Then I’ll be gone anyway and you won’t have to bother with trying to keep us from arguing, and you,” he turned to Connor, “can watch TV without getting upset that I’m stealing the precious living room from you.” “What-freaking-ever!”

Luckily, before the situation could escalate again, the doorbell rang. Evan was nervously fiddling around with a loose strand of fabric on his jacket, hoping it wouldn’t be Adam who opened the door. Adam was scary and he’d had enough run-ins with him to know that he didn’t really like him all too much. He never had, to be fair, but the whole situation with him being roped into playing baby-daddy probably made it worse.To his relief, Jared was the one who opened the door. He released a breath he didn’t realize he had been holding and smiled at his best friend/brother. “H-hey Jared, what’s up?” He went for a smile (and it was a convincing one at that), receiving a grin in return. “Hey Ev!” Jared beamed. “Not much, really. Been waiting for you.” To Jared it was a harmless enough statement, but to Evan it meant panic. “O-oh, I didn’t keep you… waiting for long or anything. Right?” He asked as he watched Jared grab his coat and bag. He could look inside the house, seeing Connor, who’s eyes were glued to the TV, and Ben, who was staring at him with a disapproving glare. He felt his palms start to get sweaty, trying to wipe them on his pants as unnoticeably as possible, failing horribly. “No, don’t worry. You’re right on time.” Jared had a talent for both easing Evan’s anxiety and help him create a whole new thing to worry about. What if he had been late? Would Jared have been mad even if it wasn’t his fault? “I can practically see the gears turning in your head, Evy. Calm down. Nothing happened, so stop worrying about what could have been.” Easier said than done, Evan mused silently. He knew Jared didn’t suddenly develop any mind-reading powers, but better safe than sorry and not think anything bad. He watched Jared kiss Ben goodbye before leaving the house and shutting the door. 

“Thank god,” Jared murmured when they sat in Evan’s car, leaning back in his seat. “Are you- are you okay? You want to talk?” Evan eyed him a little concerned, not liking seeing his best friend in distress. “Yeah yeah. I’ve just been… stressed. Nothing concerning you.” “Well, maybe not but- I want to help you. You obviously feel bad and if you, just uh, need to vent or talk. Well, then I’m here to listen. I’m your brother after all.” He emphasised his words with an encouraging smile, before starting the car. He didn’t put on any music, he never did. He was scared of getting distracted while driving and possibly hitting anything that wasn’t meant to be hit, which was pretty much everything. Jared chuckled a little before sighing. “Shit’s fucked, man. Benny hates Ben, me and Connor have been fighting a lot again, Ben gets jealous over every little thing, and I can’t ever catch a fucking break from anything. On top of that, it would be-” he stocked, inhaling sharply. In a much quieter voice, he continued. “It would have been mom’s birthday soon. And shit just keeps piling up. I’m failing school, for Christ’s sake! Me!” He threw his hands in the air in exasperation. “Like! Things are better than ever, and I wouldn’t trade this for my past but… they’re still far from optimal.” Evan listened to Jared’s lamenting, nodding and maybe humming in acknowledgement when he felt it appropriate. “Why can’t things just be easy? Why can’t I have a normal life and not worry about shit like this? Why can’t-” He was interrupted by his phone vibrating, he checked and groaned. “Why can’t my fiancé just chill out for five minutes and stop bombarding me with texts?” “Hey, if every porkchop were perfect we- we wouldn’t have hotdogs, right?” Jared shot him a confused glance before snorting. “You really need to stop watching Steven Universe, dude. It’s messing with your brain.” “Hey it’s a good show!” Evan argued, huffing. Say what you want about him, but he’d always defend his space rocks. “Yeah, yeah, sure it is, you dork.”

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Ben despised being as jealous as he was. He hated feeling like a prick every time Jared proved him wrong, but he couldn’t help it. His insecurities always got the better of him. He started pacing around the house, already done with whatever Adam had tasked him to do for the day. He passed the living room exactly two times before Connor had enough. Muting the current program they were watching, they turned to him. “Bolton, what’s your deal?” Perplexed, Ben turned around. “Wh- what do you mean, what’s ‘my deal’?” Connor raised a disbelieving eyebrow. “Dude, you’ve been pacing for like two hours. Something’s obviously going on in your mind and I’m so annoyed that I’m willing to listen if it means you’ll sit your ass down.” Ben felt slightly offended by that statement, but knew he didn’t have anything to debunk or retort with. It was true, and he knew it. With a long, deep sigh, he sat down on the couch again and leant back. “I don’t know… Guess I’m just jealous. Like always.” Connor nodded. “Relatable. JD’s hanging with a bunch of his friends too,” they grumbled and crossed their arms. Every time JD said he’d hang out with Veronica it ended badly. “At least him and Jared aren’t hanging out together this time,” they decided. “You’re right, but still.” Ben checked his phone for the umpteenth time in the past few hours, angrily pushing it back in his pocket when he didn’t see an answer. “Do you think I’m being too controlling? Do I need to chill?” Connor considered for a moment. They wanted to say ‘lol probably’, but if they were honest, they weren’t any better. So they just shrugged. “That’s something you’re gonna have to ask Jared about. I don’t know what he’s feeling. We don’t share a brain.” “Thanks for your input, means a lot,” Ben grumbled sarcastically. “Listen, I’m just saying dude. Maybe what you need to talk about more is, like, the reason you’re so jealous. ‘Cause there’s gotta be a cause.” “And you care enough to play therapist?” “Whoa whoa, I never said I’d help. I just said you can talk to so you stop irritating’ me with your pacing.” “Fair enough, I suppose.”  
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

“That movie was so good!” Jared grinned as he listened to Evan ramble about the movie. He was just as excited as Jared had anticipated. “Like! The humor was good and, and- The scene with Colossus-” Jared hummed and popped a fry into his mouth. “It was hella gay, is what it was.” “Jared, you’re, uh, you’re gay.” “I’m not gay, I’m pan,” he corrected, half serious. “O-oh, of course. I’m so sorry,” Evan teased, sticking out his tongue. “You know, for someone that- that says he’s not definitely not gay, you call yourself that an awful lot.” “Well, I have you know it’s my good right as an upstanding member of society.” This actually caused Evan to burst out laughing. “R-right, upstanding member of society- You-” Jared feigned being offended, letting out a very fake gasp. “Obviously. I can’t believe you would think any less of me. That’s so rude, smh.” “How are you expecting me to take you seriously when you say ‘smh’ out loud?” Evan snickered, catching his breath. “Smh is the language of the gods, I’ll have you know.” To ‘emphasise’ his point, he waved his finger around. Evan had to hold back another snort, instead taking a sip of his milkshake. He had missed this. Just hanging out with Jared. With everything going on in their lives, their meetings had become rarer and rarer, far and few inbetween. It made him sad, but both of them had been busy, so he didn’t hold it against Jared for not asking him to hang out. “You suck,” Jared decided, though his grin was still very much present. “And you swallow.” “You’re learning, Evan, I’m proud of you.” “Had the best teacher,” Evan shrugged, though a feeling of pride filled him. Sure, he wasn’t the biggest fan of being mean, but here was a difference between being mean and messing around with your best friend. This definitely fell into the latter category, so he didn’t have to feel bad about it. His phone buzzed with a received text, and he checked it to see a message from his mom. ‘I’m working late’, it read. ‘Maybe you can ask Jared to keep you company ‘til I’m home?’. It took all Evan had to not send a sarcastic reply back. No matter what changed, some things would always stay the same, he supposed.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

“-and like every partner I ever had left me for my stupid fuck of a brother! Hell, Troy’s even   
in Jared, I know he is!” Ben ranted, hugging a pillow to his chest. “Wait, seriously?” Connor asked in disbelief. “What could Troy possibly want from Jared?” “I mean… have you-” Ben stopped himself, remembering that, yes, of course Connor had seen Jared. They used to date. Ben liked to pretend it didn’t happen, but that didn’t just make the past disappear. “Whatever, stupid question. Anyway, my point is that Jared could probably have anyone he wanted.” Connor’s eyes narrowed for a moment as they watched him, brain trying to come up with a solution. “Perhaps. But doesn’t he want, you know, you?” This had Ben fall silent. He hadn’t thought about that. After a good while of contemplating he found something to object. “I don’t get why, though,” he murmured quietly. “I’m just… me.” “Why don’t you just ask him? There’s obviously a reason he wants to marry you. Like dude… He loves you. Trust me.” They thought back to the times they comforted Jared while Ben was comatose. About all the times they’d been to the hospital with Jared. About what he had told him about Ben. There was no doubt that Jared loved Ben. Their gaze seemed to tell Ben exactly what they were thinking. “I- I suppose. I don’t know, dude! God, why is all of this so hard?” “That’s life, bro. You just need to realize that and then you can use it to your advantage.” “Sounds like a load of horseshit, but alright.” Connor shrugged and turned back to the TV. “I’m just saying. Stop whining and address your issues.” “You’re one to talk. What about you and JD huh?” Offended, Connor turned back. “My relationship is none of your business! You’re just searching for a reason to get mad at us again!” They snarled, flat out glaring now. “No! That’s not what- listen-” Ben sputtered, taken aback. “That’s not what I mean at all, Jesus. I’m just saying that you-” he pointed at them, accusatory, “don’t talk things out either.” “How do you know that, huh?” They mocked, though it was obvious that they had been caught. The were trying to not let Ben know but it was futile. “If you did, you wouldn’t be as jealous as you are. You aren’t any better than me.” Connor tried to argue, come up with anything to prove to Ben he had the wrong idea, ultimately unable to think of anything. “Okay fine, whatever. You won. Me ‘n JD don’t talk about that either. Happy?” “Obviously not. Maybe following your own advice is something you should do sometimes. Might make   
happy.” “Well maybe you should-” They began before huffing. There was no point in arguing. Ben was right. “I guess! But talking about my feelings sucks and I don’t want to do it.” “Oh trust me, I know how that feels. But things aren’t gonna be better until we do, I suppose.” “Feelings are a bitch,” Connor decided with a snort. They turned to Ben again and sighed. “What could I even say to him? ‘Hey I’m scared you’re just with me to make fun of me like 99% of the people I dated’? Sounds stupid.” Ben rolled his eyes and put the pillow he had been holding aside to cross his arms. “Rephrasing might be in order,” he decided. “Just explain that all your previous ‘partners’,” cue air quotes, “were terrible people.” “I mean… I did,” Connor admitted, averting their gaze and focusing on their nails instead. “He assured me he wouldn’t do it but… I can’t help myself. I can’t compare to him so I’m just scared he’ll- Oh my god, we’re both terribly insecure.” They groaned and covered their face. “Fucking hell.” Ben failed to hold back a snort. “That's an epiphany to you? I figured that out as soon as you mentioned you were scared to be a dare.” “Shut the fuck up.”

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

“Can you drive me home?” Jared asked, not making any attempt to move from his place on Evan’s couch. He was quite comfortable and, as commonly known, lazy. Evan shrugged, not bothering to move either. “Um, sure. If you- if you want.” Jared nodded and stayed put for a little longer, before getting up with a sigh. “It’s getting late,” he announced. “I miss my family.” “You’ve just been gone for a few uh- for a little while,” Evan teased, already putting on his shoes. “Yes, and I’m gay and love my family. What’s your point?” “Nothing, nothing.” Evan finished with his shoes and grabbed his keys, shooing Jared out to his car. “Let’s get you to your family.”

The drive was around 15 minutes of comfortable silence: “See you soon?” Evan asked, voice a little hopeful. He had really missed hanging out with Jared. “Definitely,” Jared promised, giving Evan a short hug as a goodbye. “Bye.” Evan waved after him before driving off. Humming, Jared made his way towards his front door, yawning. The eternally sleepy Jared Kleinman struck again. He opened the door, surprised to see his fathers in the living room. “Oh. Hey dad, Pa.” “Hey baby bear,” Adam smiled, putting aside his work. “Did you have fun?” Jared nodded, yawning again. “Yeah, but I’m tired.” “Did you eat?” Larry inquired. “Yes Pa, I ate I promise.” “Well, if you’re still hungry we left you some dinner in the kitchen.” “Thank you, but I’m full.” Larry found himself not quite believing that but kept quiet, instead just nodding. “Alright then. Ben’s upstairs if you’re wondering.” With another ‘thanks’, Jared hurried upstairs, ready to go and cuddle his fiancé. He found him in their bedroom, watching Benny from a safe distance. Their son had long fallen asleep, but Ben was watchful. Benny was an infant and infants were unpredictable. He looked up and smiled at Jared when he saw his fiancé enter. “Hey. Did you have fun, babe?” He asked, standing up ad holding his arms out, asking for a hug. Jared more than gladly complied, embracing Ben. “Yeah. I mean I knew the movie already, but it was still loads of fun. We grabbed some food afterwards and Evan wouldn’t stop talking about how great it was,” he chuckled, sighing happily. “I missed you,” he whispered, moving so he could look up at Ben. Ben felt his heart beat faster, getting lost in Jared’s eyes. “I missed you too.” He leaned down to give him a short kiss. “Can we cuddle?” “Of course, babe.” Ben let Jared lead him to the bed, plopping down beside his fiancé and holding him tightly. Jared snuggled into Ben, feeling warm. “What about you? Was your day alright or did Benny give you any trouble?” “Benny was the least of my problems,” Ben admitted with a sigh, “There’s something I need to talk to you about.” The vague wording made Jared tense up, holding on to Ben a little tighter. “Oh?” “I’ve been… thinking. About why I’m so jealous and I think I finally reached a conclusion.” Jared was preparing for the worst. He buried his face in Ben’s chest, trying not to sound scared. “What’s the conclusion?” “I don’t get why you’re with me.” That was not what Jared had anticipated. “What do you mean?” “I mean that you could be with anyone. I mean, look at you then look at me. Why would you want to be with someone like me?” Jared had to pull away a little, to look into Ben’s eyes, face mirroring his confusion. “Because you’re amazing?” He asked as if it was obvious, which, to him, it was. “You’re everything I could have asked for and more. You’re funny, you’re cute, you’re loyal, you’re honest. You’re always there for me,” he started to list off before Ben could protest. “And before you try and tell me differently, you’re   
ugly. You’re a freaking 10, dude. I don’t know who told you that you’re ugly but that person’s obviously blind.” Ben wasn’t sure what to reply, taken aback. “I-” he tried, failing to come up with anything useful. “I love you. So much,” he finally murmured out, holding Jared as tight as he could. “I love you too, you idiot.” 

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

It had been a few days since their and Ben’s talk, and Connor had vehemently refused to meet up with JD. It confused and angered the older of the two so much, that eventually he just showed up at their door. He rung the doorbell rather aggressively, and waited. A considerably irritated Adam opened the door, glaring at Jason. “What do you want?” “Is Connor here?” Adam considered just sending him off again for a short moment before stepping aside and letting him in. “They’re upstairs. You know where their room is.” “Yeah I know. Thanks Mr. Kleinman.” With that he hurried upstairs, practically bursting into Connor’s room. Connor yelped, almost throwing their hairbrush in surprise. “What the hell?” They hissed. “What are you doing here?” “Connor, what the fuck. Why have you been ignoring me?” “Have not!” “Have too!” Jason glared before sighing. “You haven’t been answering my texts! Have we been fighting? What happened? Where was my notice?” Connor bit their lip and put down their hair straightener. “I needed some time to think,” they stated plainly. “Think about what? Your hair?” Jason asked, crossing his arms and leaning against their door.”If you need some time for yourself maybe give me a warning next time.” “Listen, Jason. I needed to think about me. My feelings. Our relationship and…” they trailed off, unable to know what to follow it up with. “Are you breaking up with me?” “What? No! I’m just saying I had to figure some stuff out and, well, I have!” “And?” “And I’ve realized I was being childish,” they admitted, sitting down on their bed. “About a lot of things, actually.” JD eyed them, unsure where they were going with this. “And I guess I’m sorry,” Connor finished. “For not telling you I needed a break, for not trusting you. For avoiding our issues.” They didn’t look at him, choosing to focus on the rug instead. They never realized how off the pattern was. After staying quiet for a moment, JD walked over to them, sitting down as well. He wrapped one arm around his datemate, and let out a noise that was probably the noise equivalent of a shrug. “It’s all good, I promise. Just never leave me on read again please.” “Pinky promise,” they joked, kissing his cheek.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

A week later, a double date was in order. Jared laid in Ben’s lap, both of them listening to a story JD was telling them. Something about him and Veronica stealing whatever from a store Jared didn’t quite catch the name of. Connor leant against their boyfriend, half asleep. “So me and Veronica hid the hairdryer, cops hot on our trail. Both of us were thinking ‘Hey, what the fuck are we supposed to do now’, right? Well-” “Jason, if you keep this up, this will turn into a novel rather than a retelling of events.” “It can be both,” Jason protested, huffing. “I agree with Jared. That sounds fake as hell.” “Well, it’s true! If you don’t believe me we can just ask Veronica!” He crossed his arms angrily. “I think you’re telling the truth,” Connor yawned, cuddling into him. “Thank you! At least one person that’s on my side.” “They’re you’re datemate, that doesn’t count.” “You don’t count.” “Listen-”

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Evan looked over to Alana, his textbooks long since abandoned. She still hadn’t given up, but it was obvious she would rather be doing anything else as well. “Lana do you- do you want to watch a movie?” Thankful for the distraction she nodded. “Please, I’ve had it with these stupid formulas. Who even needs math anyway? Certainly not me,” she decided, pushing her book away. She sat upright and smiled at her boyfriend. “Thank you, though. For agreeing to study with me, I appreciate it.” Evan could feel his face flush as a nervous, but flattered smile crossed his face. “Well- of course. I want you to be happy and this was what made you happy so- so I decided to-” he cut himself off with a cough before he started rambling. “Anyway you’re welcome,” he murmured quietly. Alana found it rather adorable, leaning over to give him a kiss on the cheek. “You’re adorable, Evan,” she giggled, her cheeks flushed as well. Evan’s heart began to try and burst out of his chest, as he began to fidget. ‘God she’s so cute holy-’. “I- uh, I… I love you-” he stuttered out, before internally screaming. He couldn’t have messed that up more. She was gonna hate him now. His relationship was doomed all because he was terrible at expressing his feelings. Alana didn’t seem to mind, a soft smile on her face. “I love you too.” She reached out to take his hand, squeezing it. Evan turned to look at her, eyes wide. His face was a deep shade of red and his mouth slightly agape, but he wasn’t even aware. Alana had just said she loved him. She hadn’t made fun of him for being so terrible at romance. She hasn’t said ‘It’s too soon’. She wasn’t laughing. With newfound courage he leant forward and kissed her softly, heart hammering in his chest. Alana was surprised, but it didn’t take long for her to kiss back, smiling into it. She didn’t mind that they took things slow. She liked slow. When she pulled away, her smile was as soft as before, though it reflected her happiness. She stood up with a hum, never letting go of Evan’s hand. “Come on. Let’s go watch a movie.” Evan looked at her before nodding quickly, getting up. “Yeah, of course. Movie. What- um, what do you want to watch?” “I’m in the mood for something funny,” she decided. “Something funny? Oh! I know just the thing!” He beamed, beginning to describe the movie he was thinking of.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Jared let out a hum, cradling Benny. His son let out a delighted noise, attempting to grab his father's nose. Jared let him try, making sure to never let him get close enough. Benny giggled and babbled happily, almost reaching his father nose. Jared found it adorable. He kissed his son's forehead and looked over to where his fiancé lay, asleep. A happy smile crossed his lips and he gave Benny's forehead one last kiss before setting him in his playpen. The infant instantly grabbed his nearby teddy and started to happily chew on it's ear. Jared had to hold back a snort as he got onto the bed, crawling close to Ben and cuddling up to him. To his surprise, Ben was not, in fact, asleep. He let out a tiny yelp when he felt his fiancé wrap his arms around him. “You dick,” Jared giggled, kissing Ben's cheek. In response, Ben just held him tighter, letting out a content sigh. “I love you,” Ben murmured, nuzzling Jared. Jared nuzzled back. “I love you too,” he hummed, pulling Ben in for a soft kiss. He was happy, content. Ben kissed back, smiling into it, heart beating fast with love and adoration. He shifted himself and Jared, so that he was laying on his back and Jared could rest on his chest. He knew it was his fiancé's favourite position to sleep and cuddle in. Jared let out an approving hum, pulling away from the kiss to rest tuck his head under Ben's chin. He listened to his fiancé's heartbeat, his own heart beating in sync. Things have been getting steadily better. Benny had seemingly stopped hating Ben, rather accepting him as his father. Ben was getting better with his jealousy, and Jared finally managed to get back on track in school as well. “Life's good,” Jared hummed, relaxing against Ben. “I agree.”


End file.
